Three migrant men have been indicted for allegedly strangling and stabbing another immigrant to death on Long Island last month in what the local district attorney called a “brutal” murder.
The defendants — Brayan Heredia Escobar, 19, of Guatemala; Jhon Lopez Campos, 18, of El Salvador; and Julio Beltran, 39, of El Salvador — attacked 39-year-old Salvadoran national Candido Guadalupe Saravia Martinez on Feb. 18, according to a statement from Suffolk County DA Ray Tierney.
When cops discovered Saravia Martinez’s body inside a tent near Suffolk Avenue in Central Islip, they found a rope around his neck, marks to his face from blunt force trauma and a stab wound that cut his carotid artery, the statement said.
Cops also found a machete inside the tent and a bloody knife lying on Saravia Martinez’s neck.
“This alleged murder was brutal,” Tierney said. “We will not tolerate such violence in Suffolk County. Violence such as is alleged here, affects us all, and we remain dedicated to holding these offenders responsible for their actions.”
The victim and his alleged attackers are homeless, the DA added.
Authorities said they’ve found video surveillance footage from several Suffolk Avenue businesses that caught the three alleged killers dashing out of the tent after the murder and walking into a laundromat across the street.
The DA’s office declined to comment on the attackers’ immigration status.
“We respectfully decline to comment on immigration status and pursuant to bar rules, we do not speak about prior convictions until the guilt-phase of a case is complete,” a spokesperson told The Post.
All three were indicted on second-degree murder charges, which could put each in jail for 25 years to life if convicted.
Heredia Escobar will return to court March 27. Beltran is due back in court on April 10 and Lopez Campos’ next hearing is scheduled for April 23.
